AllFreeNovel
Share Us
I followed the platform around the corner of the building and came to another door. The knob turned easily in my hand, and I slipped back inside the depot. This door led into a short corridor, and voices murmured nearby, so I quickly moved in that direction. I stopped at the archway I’d seen through the window, eased up to the opening, and peered inside the storage area.
Gwen was standing with her back to one of the walls. She must have shoved her phone back into her jeans pocket, because both her hands were clenched into fists.
The blond guy was standing a few feet away from her, his sword now clutched in his hand. I snorted. Fencing class. Right.
Two older men were flanking the young guy, along with a woman, and all three of them were also clutching swords. A weird sense of déjà vu washed over me, and for a moment, I felt like I was back at the Winter’s Web Renaissance Faire, which had taken place in Ashland a couple of months ago. Only these people weren’t dressed in knight and pirate costumes, and those swords definitely weren’t wood or plastic. Even more telling, everyone looked like they knew exactly how to use the sharp, pointed weapons, especially the young guy, who seemed to be the leader, despite his age.
“Gwendolyn Frost,” the guy drawled. “Nike’s Champion. The girl who saved Mythos Academy. I thought you’d be taller.”
He chuckled at his old, tired, cliché joke, as did his three friends.
“Brayden Vitales,” Gwen replied in an icy tone. “I thought you’d be smarter than to face me in person.”
I grinned. The girl had some serious gumption. Even though she was surrounded and outnumbered, Gwen was still standing her ground and eyeing her enemies like she was plotting the best way to take them all down. I admired her courage, although four against one wasn’t the best odds.
Good thing I was here to help with that.
“Let’s skip all the usual threats and other violent chitchat,” Brayden said. “We came here to recover the artifacts that you and your friends stole from our cabin, and you’re going to tell us where they are—every last one.”
Gwen’s chin lifted in defiance. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“Don’t play dumb with me,” Brayden replied, a bit of anger creeping into his voice. “We had security cameras hidden in the woods, and we saw you and your Protectorate friends storm inside the cabin and take our artifacts.”
He dug his hand into his coat pocket. I tensed, getting ready to leap into action, but he only pulled out a phone. “Besides, we tagged the most valuable artifacts, and the tracking app led us straight here.”
He waggled the phone at Gwen, then slid it back into his pocket.
“What are you planning to do with the artifacts?” Gwen asked. “Use them to start another war?”
Brayden laughed again, but it was a low, bitter sound. “Please. The Reapers are finished, especially now that Covington and his followers failed to take over the academy out in Snowline Ridge. As for me and my crew, well, we’ve decided to do the smart thing and get while the getting is good.”
“You’re going to sell the artifacts on the black market, take the money, and disappear.” Gwen shook her head in disgust. “Typical Reapers, running away whenever things don’t go exactly like you all planned.”
Brayden shrugged off her harsh accusation. “More or less. I’ll admit that it was clever of you and your friends to split up the artifacts, but it also gave us a chance to cut you off from the rest of them.”
She jerked back in surprise. “You caused the rockslide on the highway?”
Brayden gave her an evil grin. “Yep. Well, the other part of my crew did. I told them to recover the artifacts and kill your friends.”
Gwen’s face paled, but her hands curled into even tighter fists. “If you hurt Logan or anyone else, I’ll—”
“You’ll do what?” Brayden sneered at her. “Cry? Well, not for long, because we’re going to kill you, Oracle, just like the other half of my crew is killing your Spartan boyfriend and the rest of your friends right now.”
Oracle? Spartan? It had been a while since I’d read any mythology books, but I remembered the two types of ancient warriors, as well as Nike, the Greek goddess of victory. Unless I was gravely mistaken or these folks were engaged in some weird fantasy role-playing game, Mythos Academy was much more than just a fancy boarding school for rich kids, and Gwen and the rest of these people were far more powerful and dangerous than they appeared to be.
“But like I said, enough idle threats and chitchat,” Brayden said. “Where are the artifacts, exactly? Where is Minerva’s Dagger? Did you leave the artifacts on the train or did you stash them here at the depot?”
Gwen shuffled back, and I realized that her messenger bag was sitting on the floor behind her, as though she’d dropped it and then stepped in front of it to guard whatever was inside. Even from this distance, I could still see the faint outline of that long rectangular box pressing up against the thick gray fabric. That bulge looked like just about the right size and shape to hold a dagger. So Gwen was carrying this so-called Minerva’s Dagger in her bag, but where were the other artifacts Brayden had mentioned?
“Reaper scum,” a voice with an English accent muttered.
Startled, I glanced around, wondering where that voice had come from, but none of the adults had opened their mouth, and I didn’t see anyone else in the storage area. Gwen shifted on her feet again, and a flutter of movement caught my eye.
The sword sticking up out of her messenger bag was sort of . . . vibrating. The sword’s eye was also wide open, revealing its brilliant color, which was the same violet as Gwen’s eyes.
“You’ll never get away with this,” the English voice sounded again, and the sword’s mouth moved in perfect sync with the angry, muttered words.
Wait a second. Was her sword . . . actually . . . really . . . truly . . . talking?
